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Video is extremely valuable in internet marketing for a few reasons:

• There are massive amounts of traffic available for video
• Video is extremely viral
• Many people are more likely to watch a video than read a blog.
  TIP: People can listen and keep surfing so even though you don’t have their full attention they haven’t left you. Keep throwing in some huge benefits throughout your video to bring their attention back to you especially at the end when you want them to perform the intended action. Summarize and load the back end with HUGE benefits/solutions & your amazing OFFER.
• Video can be easily resubmitted with a different title, tags and description and there is no duplicate content penalty. Google only knows what it is by what you call it and tag it so use different titles, filenames and keywords.
  TIP: I have heard that here are ways to track duplicate video so you can change around the duration of your video (add a longer graphic at end etc., change the format (.avi .mov), different music, different filename). This is totally up to you and I don’t know how true or important it is at this stage but if you like to err on the side of caution then you can easily do these things.

But how do I make a video?

There are several ways you can make a video and they are all quite easy and relatively inexpensive… especially for the benefits you get out of them. You can use any of these or a combination of any of them.

• Slides with you talking over it or just music
• Screen capture with or without audio
• Vision shot on a video camera – Make sure your can upload your vision to your computer.
• Pictures, Images, Photos

Here are some tips for making a successful video:

• Be natural and try and inflect energy and personality, try not to talk with a monotone voice. This will make watching your video easier… if you’re boring, they will hit that little ‘x’ in the top right hand corner!
• Don’t babble… be clear and concise
• Grab their attention and state a huge benefit at the start and slowly drip feed the solutions over the video until they can’t wait for the end and they are so amped up they will do anything you ask them to.
• Use the video as a Sales letter and treat it the same way… Headline, Emotional story, Benefits, Scarcity, Reveal Product, Instruction”
• ESSENTIAL: Make sure you leave a CLEAR INSTRUCTION at the end of what you want them to do. So many people do these great videos and lose the conversion because they don’t make it clear what they want the action to be. Use both Vision AND Audio ie. “Click on the link below for www.mydomain.com now and sign up for xxxxx before (add urgency or scarcity statement)”
• Send them to a seperate page where they can only do the 1 thing you want them to do… fill in the optin form, purchase your product, click on your affiliate link etc. Don’t send them to a blog with 3 affiliate links and your little optin box half way down the page… 1 page with 1 option!
• Try not to make it a sales pitch… yes I know it is but treat it like it’s a story.

Video Software:

Slideshow/Pictures:

You can create slideshows and then put them to music or talk over them with screen capture technology.

TIP: If you make a slideshow you should also submit the slides to Slideshow sites (see Slideshow Directories at end)

• Google Docs – If you haven’t been introduced to Google Docs then check it out, oh and it’s free! It is an online basic Office with a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation and form. It is great for outsourcing work or working with a virtual team as you can share it and allocate tasks etc. Sorry sidetracked… use the presentation function… it is very easy and will most likely be fine for what you are doing.
• OpenOffice – Same concept as Google Docs.
• Powerpoint (There is a 60 day free trial as part of the 2007 Office Professional Package)
• Keynote – Part of iWorks for Macs.
• Animoto – I love animoto! The quality looks great and it is really effective. You can be as creative as you want.

Video – (slideshow with voice, screen capture etc.)

• Camtasia – Camtasia Studio is by far the best product for screen capture but it is expensive at about $299. It may be something you invest in in the future. In the meantime they offer a full version 30 day free trial… pump out as many quality videos as you can and you may be able to pay for it when the trial’s up!
• CamStudio – CamStudio is an opensource version of Camtasia. It doesn’t have some of the advanced features like timeline editing, adding callouts, multiple voice tracks, re-dubbing, creating menu-based videos, etc but it does screen capture well so if all you need is screen capture then use CamStudio. If you find you have to edit something then you could use Windows Movie Maker or iMovie and see if that does the job.
• JingProject – This is similar to the above and is free (and made by Tech Smith – the same guys who produce Camtasia). It is great for recording conversations with screen capture. The restriction is that the videos must be under 5 minutes.
• Final Cut Express – This is a basic version of Professional Editing software by Apple. I am only putting it in here because I have been asked about it as people have heard “gurus” reference it. The learning curve may be big but if you are technically minded and want to include high end video into your marketing business in the future then you could keep it in mind.
  There is a way to install it on Windows though I believe it can be problematic but I am no expert and you should research it before purchasing. The express version is around $200, whist the full studio version is $999.
• Article Video Robot – This turns articles into videos. It has a Free Trial but the trial does not allow you to export or submit the video you do. It is good though to see the quality and how the software works to see if it suits you.

Video Components

Pictures

With all of these just check the rights on each image.

iStockPhoto

sxc.hu – free

Wiki Commons Images – Perform a search using an image keyword

Clipart

Photos.com

Jupiter Images

Animations

Animation Factory

Digital Juice

Clipart

Music/Backing Tracks

Royalty Free Music

Music Bakery

Backgrounds/Templates For Powerpoint

Template Wise – Free

Brainy Betty – Mix of free and paid

Presentation magazine – Free templates and some great tutorials if you need some powerpoint lessons

Animation Factory

Video Directories:

Automated Video Submissions

Traffic Geyser – A leader and a fantastic service. It it recommended by so many IM leaders/gurus, and for a reason.

Tube Mogul – Free

Best Video Courses / Products / Information

Coming Soon!

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